Friday, June 16, 2017

Iceland

Iceland is
a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean. It has a population of
332,529 and an area of 103,000 km2 (40,000 sq mi), making it the most sparsely
populated country in Europe. The capital and largest city is Reykjavík.
Reykjavík and the surrounding areas in the southwest of the country are home to
over two-thirds of the population. Iceland is volcanically and geologically
active. The interior consists of a plateau characterised by sand and lava
fields, mountains and glaciers, while many glacial rivers flow to the sea
through the lowlands. Iceland is warmed by the Gulf Stream and has a temperate
climate, despite a high latitude just outside the Arctic Circle. Its high
latitude and marine influence keeps summers chilly, with most of the
archipelago having a tundra climate.

Ingólfr Arnarson

According
to the ancient manuscript Landnámabók, the settlement of Iceland began in the
year 874 AD when the Norwegian chieftain Ingólfr Arnarson became the first permanent
settler on the island. In the following centuries, Norwegians, and to a lesser
extent other Scandinavians, emigrated to Iceland, bringing with them thralls of
Gaelic origin. The island was governed as an independent commonwealth under the
Althing, one of the world's oldest functioning legislative assemblies.
Following a period of civil strife, Iceland acceded to Norwegian rule in the
13th century. The establishment of the Kalmar Union in 1397 united the kingdoms
of Norway, Denmark and Sweden. Iceland thus followed Norway's integration to
that Union and came under Danish rule after Sweden's secession from that union
in 1523. Although the Danish kingdom introduced Lutheranism forcefully in 1550,
Iceland remained a distant semi-colonial territory in which Danish institutions
and infrastructures were conspicuous by their absence. In the wake of the
French revolution and the Napoleonic wars, Iceland's struggle for independence
took form and culminated in independence in 1918 and the founding of a republic, On 31 December 1943, the Danish–Icelandic Act of Union expired after 25 years. Beginning on 20 May 1944, Icelanders voted in a four-day plebiscite on whether to terminate the personal union with Denmark, abolish the monarchy, and establish a republic. The vote was 97% to end the union, and 95% in favour of the new republican constitution. Iceland formally became a republic on 17 June 1944, with Sveinn Björnsson as its first president.

Sveinn Björnsson

Until the 20th century, Iceland relied largely on subsistence fishing
and agriculture, and was among the poorest in Europe. Industrialization of the
fisheries and Marshall Plan aid following World War II brought prosperity, and
Iceland became one of the wealthiest and most developed nations in the world.
In 1994, it became a part of the European Economic Area, which further
diversified the economy into sectors such as finance, biotechnology, and
manufacturing.

Iceland has
a market economy with relatively low taxes compared to other OECD countries. It
maintains a Nordic social welfare system that provides universal health care
and tertiary education for its citizens. Iceland ranks high in economic,
political and social stability and equality. In 2013, it was ranked as the 13th
most-developed country in the world by the United Nations' Human Development
Index. Iceland runs almost completely on renewable energy. Affected by the
ongoing worldwide financial crisis, the nation's entire banking system
systemically failed in October 2008, leading to a severe depression,
substantial political unrest, the Icesave dispute, and the institution of
capital controls. Some bankers were jailed. Since then, the economy has made a
significant recovery, in large part due to a surge in tourism.

Icelandic
culture is founded upon the nation's Scandinavian heritage. Most Icelanders are
descendants of Germanic and Gaelic settlers. Icelandic, a North Germanic
language, is descended from Old Norse and is closely related to Faroese and
West Norwegian dialects. The country's cultural heritage includes traditional
Icelandic cuisine, Icelandic literature and medieval sagas. Iceland has the
smallest population of any NATO member and is the only one with no standing
army, its lightly armed coast guard being in charge of defense.